Van Dyke And Williams Reportedly Split First Team Reps In Practice

We appear to be trending towards another game time decision for the Miami Hurricanes starting quarterback spot this Saturday against Virginia.

Susan Miller-Degnan shared an update Thursday in the Miami Herald:

Van Dyke — wearing a brace on his right knee — and 2023 backup Emory Williams each took reps with the first-team this week, a source said. Williams is the true freshman who led Miami to a double-overtime victory against Clemson in his first collegiate start last Saturday. The Canes are leaning heavily toward starting Van Dyke on Saturday, but he is not 100 percent, so the decision might not be known until game time.

Donno's Take:

It's worth noting that neither quarterback spoke to the media this week. On a regular week, when healthy, Van Dyke is made available. That, when combined with the info from Susan's report, tells me this could be a true game-time decision on Saturday.

When healthy or close to it, (nobody is 100% this time of year) Van Dyke gives the Hurricanes their best chance to win. However, Williams showed us against Clemson that he's capable of doing enough to win a big game. Miami has a much better team than last year and they showed they're capable of rallying around a young backup QB.

Keeping that in mind, I would only start Van Dyke if he's not putting himself at risk of re-injury or re-aggravation of the issues he's currently dealing with. Head coach Mario Cristobal did say his injuries are not serious.

As a side note, Virginia having to prepare for two possible quarterbacks is not a bad thing.

My gut says Van Dyke will end up getting the nod but don't rule out a second straight Williams start.

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